Ellington

On the Mississippi House list of ways to deal with the state's budget crunch is selling the state's jet used by Gov. Haley Barbour. Last week, House lawmakers voted to put the Cessna Citation, valued at about $2.7 million, on the auction block, reports Business Week.

House Appropriations Chairman Johnny Stringer, D-Montrose, said ... the state still owes about $400,000 on the aircraft it acquired used through a lease-purchase agreement in 2004, so Stringer said a sale could bring the cash-strapped state about $2.3 million.

"It's not business as usual," Stringer said, echoing the words Barbour has used frequently the past few months to describe the tight state budget.

"We've got to change," Stringer said. "We're cutting education, all these budgets. I don't know why we have to keep a jet airplane around."

The House attempted to pass similar measure during the last legislative session, however the Senate defeated the effort. Among the ways the state could use the $2.3 million is to replenish the fund used to offset the cost of car tags.